2011 Feb 15 Interivew: today's vip with Astrid Chan

Bump up the thread for newly transcribed excerpt on 1) how Steven broke the ice to bury the hatchet with Sonija to finally clear up the misunderstanding between them. 2) How Steven won't listen to gossips and rumors.

 first posted 2011-2-15

http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/nL1xxu1UHd0/

Astrid's Today's VIP with Steven as guest star.

Of significance:
Steven says he learns through the years in entertainment to not only ignore rumors and gossips,but also to disengage himself from them.  Astrid responds that Steven was already that way from the very start when she met him -- that Steven has no interest in rumors or gossiping. 

7:10

A: There was once a time, reportedly, that there was some misunderstanding between you and Sonija. But now you two are ok again.  And have become friends.

S: Good friends, to boot

  

A: Can you recount how all this came about?

S: I recall it was like about 1-2 months before the shooting of 7 Days in Life, just happened that Sonija and I along with other colleagues had to go outstation on an overseas job (Singapore Starhub Awards).  We both knew we had this upcoming collaboration. We were sitting inside the hotel restaurant drinking. I asked her bluntly: So actually what happened last time?

A: Haha! What happened? You guys didn’t even know what happened

S: Yah, We poured out what we had heard and felt at that time to each other. Yee? How come there were discrepancies? During that period, we separately heard words (noises) that made each of us feel very uncomfortable, very unpleasant. Left a thorn inside each of our hearts.  But after clarifying..; actually it’s quite a pity. If we were good friends, we should not have let these noises affect our relationship.  So after that we happily collaborated on 7 Days in Life.  Even after 7 Days in Life is done, we still keep in touch.  

A: This once again evinces that (like during that time of you and Sonija) especially in this entertainment circle, we live within a circle with too much extraneous noises, and also maybe media not understanding the situation exacerbated the misunderstanding between the two main characters .  

S: That’s true

A: But luckily you were willing to take the initiative to bring up the incident.  

S: Actually, I had been waiting for just this opportunity.  I feel that two persons, boyfriend or girlfriend or just good friends or two good brothers, or good sisters, it’s not like we have a vendetta or a huge grudge, that we can meet and become friends requires fate. Should not let some rumors or gossips to influence the relationship.   

I’ve been in the entertainment circle for almost 18 years now.  I hold on to one attitude.  I won’t listen, won’t listen at all.  Won’t listen to those so-call  news, or gossips or rumors or news from one person point of view about another person.  I’ve no interest to listen to them. Because if I listen to the info; you told me this person was this and that, but that was only your point of view. But maybe I feel differently if I talk to this particular person.  I only believe my own perception, my own eyes and what my heart feels about that person.  Anyway, when I hear this kind of talk, I immediately stop it.  Never mind, I don’t want to know. Don’t tell me.

A: Actually, you said you’ve been in the industry for 18 years that you have become thus, but many years ago, you were already that way wo.

S: True!

A: Actually there is one thing that can be learned from you, a good thing; to be your friend is good is that many years ago you already disliked gossips/rumors.  Like people spreading news, you would not consider that to be true.

S: I certainly won’t

A: But that’s not just recently. So that’s why all these year you have a very good affinity with the older generation. Your face does not look old but inside you, you are actually an old  man.

S: hahaha!  You’d said the same thing to me before long time ago.

A:  Really, I don’t remember.

S: yes, long time ago you said that to me.

Related material (weibo) on Astrid
10/28 6:30 Once there was a friend. I thought if I treated her well, perhaps, conscious of it she would reciprocate in kind! But, because of various reasons, I hurt her, and she hurt me, too! Today, we met again and talked at length of the past. Turn out, who owes who is actually not important at all. Maybe the starlight of that time was brilliant, but, it does not mean tonight’s moonlight can't regain its past brightness! Friend, it’s all in the heart! In the heart! 

TN: At first thought he was talking about Sonija Kwok, but now am pretty sure he meant Astrid Chan. After all these years, on October 28th Steven and Astrid finally saw each again doing on  the stage recording of 《善心滿載仁愛堂》 hosted by Astrid.  see photos

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Interview with Anna Yau 2006
After work, during my free time, I prefer not to talk shop. I don’t like talking about myself. Like, so what film are you making now? So on and so forth. Even at old friends’ gatherings, I'm very clear on that I’ll brook no entertainment related questions. If you are my friends, don’t discuss my series, don’t ask if she’s pretty or not, or if she a good person. Etc… If you insist on asking me this kind of questions, I’ll leave immediately. I don’t relish chatting about these things after work.

A: Neither do I.
 

News 2011 SM and SK let bygone by bygone

source: weiwenpo
Date: 1/26/2011
Misunderstanding Dissolved; Steven Ma's One Kiss Sealed Him as Mr. Suction Cup.
郭羨妮「誤會」已冰釋 馬仔一吻封「吸盤先生」
Steven Ma and Sonija Kwok’s new series, 7 Days in Life, produced by Leung Choi Yuen, premiered recently. Besides the light kisses scene already aired, the pair has an extremely intimate scene that has yet to air. Sonija reveals that prior to that shoot, Steven called her up on the phone to analyze the scene. “Actually, it’s not our first time performing an intimate scene, moreover, we are all professional actors, so if we follow the script, there shouldn’t be any awkwardness. I’ve complete trust in him. He is a real gentleman, and is very protective of his partners. After the shoot, while checking out the pictures, I noticed that the shape of his mouth while kissing me resembles a squid’s suction cup. Later on weibo while chatting with him, I even teased him as “Mr. Suction Cup”.

In the series, Steven portrays a flirty burglar. Although he loves Sonija deeply, he still hooks up with other females thus provoking Sonija’s jealousy and their constant arguments; in one such occasion, Sonija even slapped Steven real hard on the face. Sonija says: “This scene was really difficult to act out. I don’t know how to argue, will cry after saying just a few words. To me, arguing scenes are much more harder to perform.”

A few years ago, because of a scandal they misunderstood each other, which broke their friendship. This series is their ‘ice-breaker’ first collaboration. Having experienced so much tribulation, Sonija treasures her present friendship with Steven all the more. She now has a better understanding of Steven’s character and thinking. “From our first collaboration to today’s re-meeting, we have all matured. My looking back at our past misunderstandings evokes only a faint smile. (得啖笑?) Now I understand how he thinks and what he says. We have become good friends. After finishing this series, we still keep in touch. Our feelings have been elevated to that of good friends for life. I think Steven and I are matching, our collaboration had sparks. Hope to collaborate with him again. Will be even happier if we can become an on-screen couple.”

So much publicity on Steven and Sonija's intense kiss scene but that on screen kiss just flashed by in a blink of an eye.  What a let down.

Steven Ma - Sonija Kwok Scandal

asianfanatics 287
Posted 20 April 2010

Sneezer: Does any one know why TVB cast and assigned Steven to "7 days isolation" with Sonija when in fact they both are NOT in the best of terms with each other. Wouldn't that likely set tension and less success to the show?

Tamaya: I don’t know but switching on my unsurpassed fertile imagination I came up with the following speculation. Read it with a grain of salt, and don’t ask how I know, I just do.

Obviously, overall, the scandal hurt Steven in more ways than Sonija.  Sonija lost a good friend, but Steven not only lost a good friend but also had his heart broken, trampled and ground through the rumor mills, not to mention his tarnished image and reputation. Steven’s mental anguish, and his humiliation and loss of face at the hands of the media can only be imagined. Both had resolutely vowed never to speak to each other again. But time not only heals but matures a person, too. Some pain may never go away but the passage of time has a way of lessening its potency.

Fast forward to end of 2005 when Steven and Sonija met up for the first time after their scandal to collaborate in Land of Wealth. The press had a field day reporting their awkwardness towards each other. Reportedly, Sonija was more gracious and willing than Steven to have their pictures taken together. “The reporters wanted to snap Sonija and my pictures together; I found that too contrived, so I declined. " Steven was also reported to have said: “Yes, she was more gracious (dai fong) than I in taking pictures together. For me, something just can’t be forgotten that easily.”

I’ve always believed that TVB wanted Steven to eat humble pie so deliberately had him acting as second fiddle to Moses and Sonija, who used to be 2nd leads to his first. If his past scandal with Sonija could spark up some publicity for the series, all the better, but the duo maintained their professionalism and kept their distance from each other.

In between then and now, they have collaborated several times. 1) They collaborated as performing guests in New Zealand Singing Competition final, 2) they collaborated on the stage show, her Ophelia to his Hamlet, for 6 days, 3)they flew to Malaysia for some promotional event, and 4) they were recently in Singapore for Starhub awards and 5) in 2007 TVB anniversary, Sonija was one of the 4 fadans clinging to his arms. And now they are collaborating as husband and wife in a series. The coincidental collaborations are a bit much. Why?

My speculation on the positive side:
So did someone want them to reconcile so deliberately arranged for them to work in close proximity? As the years passed by and the dust has settled, Sonija may be more amenable to forget their past enmity and forgive Steven for hurting and not believing in her. The most hurtful thing that Steven said of her was to imply that she was so materialistic as to betray their friendship to advance her own self interests and career. That must have had rankled her but her heart was not broken (she had Deric.) unlike Steven’s who thought they were dating at the time.

But Steven is nothing if not obstinate therefore not ready to reconcile – he is a Scorpio after all.  In LOW, he refused to take pictures with Sonija alone.  Reportedly, during Hamlet publicity press conference, on a bathroom break pretext, Steven excused himself from taking photos with just Sonija  and himself.  He would work professionally with Sonija but he was not ready to reconcile. Not just yet. But time is on their side, for 8 years have passed, and Steven has matured in age and mind. Steven is always his own worst critic who is into introspection and, of course, hindsight is 20/20. And he did after all write this line in his book: "Between hate and forget, forget is preferable to hate." So he'd better practice it; what is more therapeutic than to let bygones be bygones.

Steven is now ready to forgive if not forget. Their working together might have caused a crack on their walls originally erected to protect themselves against each other. Each time they worked together, the crack widened a bit and the bottled-up feelings behind the walls were able to sip through. Their strong friendship of yesteryear could not be denied. Steven had to be the one to initiate the talk, since he was the mulish one keeping his distance all these time. (Don’t ask how I know this, just do) Steven has said nobody can make him change his mind unless he is agreeable to it. Anyway, women usually have a softer and more sentimental heart; Sonija had probably regretted hurting Steven so badly years ago. I am glad that Steven has finally pulled out the thorn that had been needling him all those years. Forgiveness is good for the soul. But I’m still keeping a vigilant eye on Sonija! (As if!! )  

But  of course, I am not discounting that my speculation above is all for naught; TVB just wanted to make good use of its available resources, for that's just what artistes are to it.  And since Steven and Sonija were available they had to be utilized as such, nothing to it, just a company's strategy of human resources  allocation. 


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Bashful: I think Steven was mad at Sonjia because he was not over her yet but now that he is acting so close to her from the clips I was a little surprised.

Tamaya: Oh, I think Steven is definitely over Sonija way before he got together with Vivian. This is what he said in one of his interviews when asked about his unattached status.

Even though true love has yet to be found, he insists that he will certainly get married one day. “I don’t want to date just yet because I want my heart to be fully cleansed first! Else it will be very unfair to my future partner.”

Steven has a strong sense of right and wrong, good and bad, plus a strong sense of family and filial piety. From interviews, Steven values friendship a lot; once that trust between them is broken there is usually no going back for him and that friend.  (He says as much in  an interview.)

I think Steven kept his distance from Sonija all these years not because he was mad at her per se or was not over her yet as you said but because he did not want to have anything to do with ‘that woman’ (Steven fans’ nickname for Sonija. Hehee!) Like the common saying goes: “Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me!” Sonija reportedly said something along this line: Steven Ma is not for me. My standard for boyfriend is much higher!”

In his mind Sonija not only betrayed his trust but his family’s goodwill too. And Steven is a filial son. That she would hand over the photos of their dinner together with Steven's family at his home to tabloids only rubbed in the broken trust to him, and besmirched the memory of that happy family dinner.

I guess at LOW promotional event Steven declined to pose for publicity pictures with Sonija just for tabloid's entertainment when they were in fact not on good terms not because he was still mad at Sonija, but because like he said he found the whole set up too contrived and uncomfortable for him, and he also resented being put on display by the tabloid reporters. His professionalism requires him to do his scenes well with all his partners but does not require him to be put on a show for a gawking audience.

“Be true to oneself" 活出真我 is a slogan everybody’s familiar with, but how many actually did it, or have the courage to do it? “ SM quote

“My attitude towards the “fake masks” has always been to ignore them, and to treat them accordingly. In this circle, if they’re decent, then we’ll be friends. If uncomfortable with them, then I’ll avoid them.”… “…….So all that superficiality will not affect me, true not only in the entertainment circle, but also in life.” sm quote

So ya, I believe Steven is way over Sonija long time ago. Put yourself in Steven's shoes, won’t you avoid a former friend whom you think has betrayed you? Would you stand beside him smiling prettily (or glowered) at the camera just to appease the public? I guess not! Not because you were still mad at him or haven’t got over him (be it love or hate) but because you just didn’t want to have anything to do with him anymore, or be phony before a camera. Same for Steven because he just couldn’t do it. (not saying Sonija was being phony)

Bashful: You know it took them 8 years to clear up the misunderstanding and now they are like best friends off screen.

Tamaya: If you've read Steven blog entries and his prose essays, then you will know his way of thinking. Steven always emphasizes that life is unpredictable, that life is precious, that life is for living. The recent numerous natural disasters from the tsunami, to earthquakes to famines and to floods only served to drive home the above thinking - that Life is just too short to hold grudges, grudges that may have arisen out of misunderstandings, at that. The 7days partnership is a good way to announce to the world that he is ready to let bygones be bygones. Steven does not do things halfway, (he himself says this) once he made up his mind he will go all out, and in this particular case, to welcome Sonija back into his circle of friends.